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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. clip — for paper
  3. last — final
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. mark — a grade
  8. mark — a trace
  9. mate — to breed
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. firm — a company
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. last — finally
  14. clip — a video
  15. rush — hurry
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. last — to go on
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. clip — to cut
  20. mate — a partner
  21. wind — moving air
  22. mate — a friend
  23. firm — decided
  24. wind — moving air

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com